Pulling up to the gas pump at Kroger this morning, I got out of the car …
Walked closer to the pump …
Closer still …
A tad closer …
And I saw Him/Them …
Someone felt I needed … a little Jesus.
I agreed. So I filled up my tank — and walked away with Him.
Marveling this morning at how much DELICIOUS JOY a little box of autumn chocolates can bring.
What a terrific Day of the Dead 2025 Robert and I have experienced!
It all began with breakfast as we feasted on delicious Pan de Muerto (Bread of the Dead) we had ordered the day before from local Mexican bakery/restaurant La Canasta Panaderia.
What IS Pan de Muerto? you may be asking. Here’s what Google told me:
Then we went to our church, Asbury Memorial hrre in Savannah, for our annual All Saints Sunday service, where we remember the church members and other dear folks who have passed on during the past year.
At the front of the church, there was a large ofrenda (altar), and at one point, the pastor invited folks to come forward with photos or mementos of their loved ones.
I brought a little marble Last Supper sculpture I bought for my parents when daughter Amy and I were in Italy … 25 years ago. It sat on their mantle for eons until they passed away.
This year Robert remembered his kitty cat Boopers.
Then tonight HR and I had our Dia de los Muertos supper, consisting of several of our deceased parents’ favorite foods: Maryland crab cakes, homemade vegetable soup and cornbread.
A wonderful and joyful heartfelt day of remembrance.
Oh, let’s not forget the special treats our folks loved.
Robert and I had a quiet, meaningful couple of hours the other evening setting up our annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) ofrenda (altar), remembering our parents and other loved ones who have passed on before us.
The time was especially dear for me this year because I thought to pull out some old files that, along with other paraphernalia, stayed for decades in my parents’ safety deposit box before they died (my mother in 2016 and my father in 2020).
In one file was the funeral information about a brother, Jimmie, who was born in 1946 and only lived for five weeks.
My mother dried and kept some flowers from his little grave.
These old flowers are now 78 years ago—three quarters of a century!
I love the Day of the Dead season. “Nov. 1 is known as Día de los Angelitos, which honors the souls of deceased children, and Nov. 2 is Día de los Muertos.” usatoday.com
So today HR and I remembered little Jimmie and his brief life.
And that’s my Saturday Evening Post.
My weekly gratitude journal, of sorts.
1. Making our annual ofrenda (altar) for Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead), celebrating our loved ones who have passed on before us.
2. Halloween coffee this morning at one of our favorite coffee bars here in Savannah, Origin.
And the baristas who made them …
3. The fortitude to laugh and savor the moment, even in the midst of our current political climate.
4. The Halloween morning light teasing our steep 1840’s stairs.
5. Cool Halloween decorations here in Savannah.
May your Halloween Weekend be filled with Good Spirits.
Taking the trash out into the alley behind our place, I ran into this …
“Uh oh,” I thought, “there’s a story here somewhere.”
A discarded (before Halloween!) strange-looking jack-o’-lantern hunkering down at the feet of a thoroughly smashed mirror.
I moved closer, snapping a few photos (I’m not sure why).
“How very sad,” I cringed, “and somebody’s in for some bad luck!”
“You obviously know not of that which you speak,” a crystal clear voice came from the shards.
I walked away, educated.
The other day Robert and I drove over to the Islands Library on Whitemarsh Island near us here in Savannah to pick up a book I wanted that wasn’t available at the library closest to us. (TMI?)
Entering the little library, we immediately saw a colorful display about the recent Banned Books Week.
A quick Google search and AI explained to me that the theme of Banned Books Week was “Censorship Is So 1984. Read for Your Rights,” inspired by George Orwell’s novel and a call to action against censorship.
Robert and I plan to read through the top 10 most challenged books of 2024 …
I urge you too to …
Marveling this Monday, remembering the terrific Savannah Pride Weekend we just experienced.
As I have mentioned before, both Savannah and Atlanta hold their Pride Festivals in October because the traditional month of June is simply TOO HOT here.
We started the weekend at our church’s Friday night Pride Service. 
Then Saturday was the Savannah Pride Festival in beautiful Forsyth Park.
I love the beautiful truthfulness of this poster:
NealEnJoy 